Meta restores Kerala CM’s official posts after CMO intervention

Meta has restored two official posts on Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan’s Facebook page (CMO Keralam) after the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) intervened with the company and the Union IT Ministry. The Chief Minister confirmed the restoration on X on Saturday night, noting that the posts had been taken down without clear justification.

The removed posts included an announcement about the Onam festival allowance for Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and greetings for Nabi Day (Milad-un-Nabi), which marks the birth of the Prophet Muhammad. The CMO had written to Meta and the Union Ministry of Electronics and IT, asking for the posts to be restored and for an explanation under IT rules for the takedown.

While the content is now back online, Mr. Satheesan expressed concern that verified government communications—ranging from festival greetings to welfare notices—could be arbitrarily removed. The Chief Minister’s Secretary, Rathan U. Kelkar, has taken up the matter with Meta and the IT Ministry, seeking a formal explanation under the IT Act, clarity on whether the removal was automated or manual, and safeguards to protect official public communication handles.

This incident follows recent reports of Meta removing or restricting posts critical of the state government, including one by Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan. Opposition parties have accused the government of an “undeclared social media emergency,” and the Kerala Union of Working Journalists has called the actions a threat to press freedom. Both Mr. Satheesan and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala have denied making any requests to Meta to take down content. The Chief Minister also noted that his earlier request to restore the CMO’s official Instagram account had gone unanswered for two months.